Applications for Hellertown Facade Improvement Grants Under Review

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Several business and property owners presented applications for facade grants of up to $10,000 to the Hellertown Planning Commission at a meeting April 12.

Planners are scheduled to vote on the applications at a meeting Wednesday, April 20 at 6 p.m. at Borough Hall, 685 Main St., Hellertown. After that, the commission’s recommendations will need to receive final approval by borough council, which will likely vote on them May 2.

Along with fulfilling other requirements, applicants must provide matching funding for the projects, which must also be completed within three months of the property owner receiving a Notice to Proceed (or the grant money must be forfeited).

Grants are awarded based on merit, and not on the financial need of the applicants.

According to an overview of the Facade Grant Program provided by the borough:

The Borough of Hellertown is offering reimbursement grants for business façade improvements in the Borough, up to a maximum amount of $10,000 per property. For every $1 in façade grant funding requested, the applicant must commit $1 of private investment. Up to $3,000 can be requested for streetscape-level improvements; this counts towards the $10,000 grant maximum per application. For every $1 in streetscape-level grant funding, the applicant must commit $2 of their own funds.

Façade Improvement Grants are intended to stimulate private investment in the preservation of historic downtown architecture and to foster image-making improvements to properties; the exclusive availability to businesses (as opposed to residential) attests to the borough’s commitment to economic development. For the intents of this program, a façade is defined as the exterior side of the building that faces the street contained in the property address, i.e. Main Street or Water Street. Streetscape-level improvements are limited to the area of the property directly contiguous to the property façade.

Funding for the Borough’s Facade Program is provided by the Northampton County Department of Community and Economic Development (NCDCED), via a Community Improvement Grant funded from their Community Investment Partnership Program (CIPP). The CIPP program provides resources to Northampton County’s aging communities that lack access to resources in implementing comprehensive community revitalization plans and strategies that will improve the quality of life for our citizens and create opportunities to stimulate, attract and sustain economic development. The CIPP is a new approach designed to assist the County in prioritizing and allocating resources for the NCDCED, who is funding the program using approximately $1 million dollars of Northampton County Local Share Table games revenue.

For further information about the facade improvement grants and the requirements that accompany them, click here.

Among the submissions for facade improvement money are the following properties, all of which (except two) are located on Main Street in Hellertown:

326 Main St. (Heintzelman Funeral Home)

Proposal: Exterior painting